MCA diktat: Shetty can't represent Wilson

Ratnakar Shetty is likely to move court this week to challenge the five-year ban that the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) has imposed on him. While Shetty will not be able to contest the MCA elections so long as the ban is in place — unless, of course, he gets relief from the court — the association has tried to divest him of all his powers.

Shetty, also the BCCI’s general manager for game development, has been the authorised signatory of the Wilson College Gymkhana. He also taught chemistry at Wilson College till he took voluntary retirement in December 2008. It is learnt that the MCA had written to the college to appoint a new representative, citing the ban on Shetty. A letter to this effect was apparently dispatched a day after the MCA enforced the ban.

Shetty told dna, “There is nothing in the MCA constitution that states who the club representative should be. That is entirely the prerogative of the club. The representative should be a staff member and above 18 years of age.”

Some MCA members admitted to dna that the association should have followed certain procedures before initiating a strong step as a ban. “For suspending any member, you need to constitute an inquiry committee. Usually, a ban is imposed if you have indulged in anti-club activities or have brought the association to disrepute. You must also document the minutes within 60 days. And the AGM minutes have no record of Shetty’s allegations of black-marketing by MCA office bearers,” said an official in the know.

Wilson College principal Dr AH Sirvaiya couldn’t be reached for comment despite several attempts.

Moving on to the MCA elections, it has emerged that three political heavyweights are set to throw their hats in the ring. They will be contesting for the slots of one president and two vice-presidents. The move is aimed at keeping the Vilasrao Dekhmukh faction alive. Until this point, it was a three-way contest between the Sharad Pawar group/Bal Mahadalkars, Dilip Vengsarkar and Vijay Patil. The names of the new candidates are withheld. It is likely that some announcement will be made on June 27.